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Validation of a candidate instrument to assess image quality in digital mammography using ROC analysis

Boita, Joana ; van Engen, Ruben E. ; Mackenzie, Alistair ; Tingberg, Anders LU orcid ; Bosmans, Hilde ; Bolejko, Anetta LU ; Zackrisson, Sophia LU ; Wallis, Matthew G ; Ikeda, Debra M. and Van Ongeval, Chantal , et al. (2021) In European Journal of Radiology 139.
Abstract
Purpose
To validate a candidate instrument, to be used by different professionals to assess image quality in digital mammography (DM), against detection performance results.
Methods
A receiver operating characteristics (ROC) study was conducted to assess the detection performance in DM images with four different image quality levels due to different quality issues. Fourteen expert breast radiologists from five countries assessed a set of 80 DM cases, containing 60 lesions (40 cancers, 20 benign findings) and 20 normal cases. A visual grading analysis (VGA) study using a previously-described candidate instrument was conducted to evaluate a subset of 25 of the images used in the ROC study. Eight radiologists that had participated... (More)
Purpose
To validate a candidate instrument, to be used by different professionals to assess image quality in digital mammography (DM), against detection performance results.
Methods
A receiver operating characteristics (ROC) study was conducted to assess the detection performance in DM images with four different image quality levels due to different quality issues. Fourteen expert breast radiologists from five countries assessed a set of 80 DM cases, containing 60 lesions (40 cancers, 20 benign findings) and 20 normal cases. A visual grading analysis (VGA) study using a previously-described candidate instrument was conducted to evaluate a subset of 25 of the images used in the ROC study. Eight radiologists that had participated in the ROC study, and seven expert breast-imaging physicists, evaluated this subset. The VGA score (VGAS) and the ROC and visual grading characteristics (VGC) areas under the curve (AUCROC and AUCVGC) were compared.
Results
No large differences in image quality among the four levels were detected by either ROC or VGA studies. However, the ranking of the four levels was consistent: level 1 (partial AUCROC: 0.070, VGAS: 6.77) performed better than levels 2 (0.066, 6.15), 3 (0.061, 5.82), and 4 (0.062, 5.37). Similarity between radiologists’ and physicists’ assessments was found (average VGAS difference of 10 %).
Conclusions
The results from the candidate instrument were found to correlate with those from ROC analysis, when used by either observer group. Therefore, it may be used by different professionals, such as radiologists, radiographers, and physicists, to assess clinically-relevant image quality variations in DM. (Less)
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organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
European Journal of Radiology
volume
139
publisher
Elsevier
external identifiers
  • pmid:33819803
  • scopus:85103594392
ISSN
1872-7727
DOI
10.1016/j.ejrad.2021.109686
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
1f3e6a92-0f6e-4221-8f5e-986c39f034f5
date added to LUP
2021-04-07 08:35:50
date last changed
2024-04-20 04:18:11
@article{1f3e6a92-0f6e-4221-8f5e-986c39f034f5,
  abstract     = {{Purpose<br/>To validate a candidate instrument, to be used by different professionals to assess image quality in digital mammography (DM), against detection performance results.<br/>Methods<br/>A receiver operating characteristics (ROC) study was conducted to assess the detection performance in DM images with four different image quality levels due to different quality issues. Fourteen expert breast radiologists from five countries assessed a set of 80 DM cases, containing 60 lesions (40 cancers, 20 benign findings) and 20 normal cases. A visual grading analysis (VGA) study using a previously-described candidate instrument was conducted to evaluate a subset of 25 of the images used in the ROC study. Eight radiologists that had participated in the ROC study, and seven expert breast-imaging physicists, evaluated this subset. The VGA score (VGAS) and the ROC and visual grading characteristics (VGC) areas under the curve (AUCROC and AUCVGC) were compared.<br/>Results<br/>No large differences in image quality among the four levels were detected by either ROC or VGA studies. However, the ranking of the four levels was consistent: level 1 (partial AUCROC: 0.070, VGAS: 6.77) performed better than levels 2 (0.066, 6.15), 3 (0.061, 5.82), and 4 (0.062, 5.37). Similarity between radiologists’ and physicists’ assessments was found (average VGAS difference of 10 %).<br/>Conclusions<br/>The results from the candidate instrument were found to correlate with those from ROC analysis, when used by either observer group. Therefore, it may be used by different professionals, such as radiologists, radiographers, and physicists, to assess clinically-relevant image quality variations in DM.}},
  author       = {{Boita, Joana and van Engen, Ruben E. and Mackenzie, Alistair and Tingberg, Anders and Bosmans, Hilde and Bolejko, Anetta and Zackrisson, Sophia and Wallis, Matthew G and Ikeda, Debra M. and Van Ongeval, Chantal and Pijnappel, Ruud M. and Broeders, Mireille and Sechopoulos, Ioannis}},
  issn         = {{1872-7727}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{03}},
  publisher    = {{Elsevier}},
  series       = {{European Journal of Radiology}},
  title        = {{Validation of a candidate instrument to assess image quality in digital mammography using ROC analysis}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ejrad.2021.109686}},
  doi          = {{10.1016/j.ejrad.2021.109686}},
  volume       = {{139}},
  year         = {{2021}},
}